Gather to Me
by Azul Eclipse
Summary: -COMPLETE- Felix is about to discover the secrets buried within the Tomegathericon. What chaos will ensue? Felix-Sheba. Final chapter up! Please R&R!
1. Darkness Falls

**Disclaimer: I don't own Golden Sun or the Tomegathericon.**

**Author's Note: I'm back, after being sidelined for several weeks by a combination of broken computers, vacation, and plain old writer's block.  All three of those problems have disappeared, but another looms: next week I move into college.  I'll be bringing my stories with me, but I have no idea if or when I'll be able to work on them.   Hopefully, I'll be able to stick with it.**

**As for this story, it's been kicking around inside my head for a while and I finally pinned it down.  Hope you enjoy.**

         "_I shall give this power to the first to reach it._"

         And that was why they'd returned to this godforsaken village.  Felix shook his head disgustedly.  After recovering Piers's crystal, they'd gone to his ship at the shore.  Felix had been anxious to leave, to get this quest done with as quickly as possible, but Piers had wanted to assure the mayor of Madra that they'd recovered his prize.  Felix hadn't seen any feasible reason to deny him, so they'd returned to Madra that night.  The decision was made to rest at the inn that night before starting out the next day.  Then, at breakfast the next day, Kraden and Jenna had brought up what the Gabomba Statue had said.

         "We're really going to need every type of Psynergy we can get, Felix," Kraden had argued.

         "And for the Gabomba to hide it like that, it must be something pretty important," Jenna had reasoned.

         Felix had been adamantly against returning, feeling it was imperative to find their way to the Western Sea.  He and Jenna had argued stubbornly all through breakfast and beyond.  Piers had refused to take part, insisting that he had no part in the discussion.  And in the end, it had been Sheba who had swayed Felix's decision.  He'd looked into her deep hazel eyes for support, and she'd simply said, "It may make our quest easier, Felix."  And he'd been unable to argue with her.

         It was just like her to be the diplomatic one, Felix thought.  Before they'd met up with Piers, Jenna's fiery temper and his own inherent stubbornness had led to more than one encounter, most of which were smoothed over by the young Jupiter adept.  There was something remarkable about the girl with no past.  Her poise throughout her abduction from Lalivero had impressed Felix, even as he feared Saturos's motives.  And throughout their trials and tribulations, he'd found it increasingly difficult to deny her anything.

         So they'd made the continent-and-a-half trek back to Kibombo, snuck into the mammoth Gabomba Statue, and descended into the catacombs.  Only to find this dead end.

         Felix glared around the damp, dreary cave, looking for some outlet for his frustration.  There was nothing here except dark puddles and overgrown mosses.  That was surely worth the week's journey back to Kibombo.

         "Nothing here either," Piers called from the other side of the cavern.

         "Can we leave now?" Felix growled out.

         Jenna was very quiet, avoiding his gaze.  Piers spoke up, "There doesn't seem to be any reason to stay."

         Without waiting for another response, Felix whirled and strode towards the ladder.  He was stopped dead in his tracks by the small voice sounding behind him.

         "Felix, I can check to see if there's anything hidden in the mosses," she said firmly.

         Felix closed his eyes without turning around, heaving a large sigh.  They really needed to get moving, especially having wasted all this time, but he still could not come up with a good reason to deny her.

         "Can you be quick?" he said with more edge than he wanted.

         For his response, he felt the stagnant air in the cave begin to swirl.  He turned, cape whipping in the ever increasing breeze, to find Sheba holding her staff in front of her, eyes closed.  Felix narrowed his eyes and shifted as the wind ripped the moss from its tenuous cling to the damp earth, revealing a strange depression in the center of the cave.  The wind intensified even further.

         "Sheba, don't you think that's enough?" Jenna cried out, struggling to keep her balance.

         Suddenly, Sheba's eyes snapped open, and Felix read panic in her eyes.  "I… I've lost control of it!  I can't stop it!"

         Felix felt a spike of fear drive into him, and he attempted to leap towards Sheba, only to have the wind drag him roughly along the ground.  He struggled in vain to regain his feet as he slipped into the edge of the depression.  Felix felt a strange wrenching sensation inside of him, and suddenly the wind stopped and he felt himself falling.  He hit the ground hard, landing on his back and momentarily losing his breath.  He blinked rapidly, shaking his head and trying to regain his senses.  As he looked at the ceiling, Sheba suddenly appeared out of nowhere, falling directly towards him.  Felix's breath whooshed out of him for a second time as he broke the wind adept's fall.  His arms reflexively wrapped around Sheba's back.

         "Wha-" Felix started, then coughed violently.

         "Ugh," Sheba groaned, lifting her head and shaking it groggily.  She looked into Felix's face.  "Are you alright?"

         Felix drew in a breath and slowly exhaled.  "Yeah, I'll be fine.  How are you?"

         "A little sore, but otherwise I'll live," Sheba replied.  Then she began to blush violently.  Felix suddenly realized their position and felt the heat rising in his face as well.  He removed his arms from Sheba's back and let her roll to her feet.  After climbing to his feet, he looked around and said, "So what happened?  And where are we?"

         Sheba retrieved her staff from the ground and looked around.  "I don't know what happened.  I started my whirlwind and it just grew out of my control."

         Felix shifted the scabbard on his back.  "Do you think it had something to do with that weird depression?"

         Sheba glanced at the ceiling.  "You know, I think you might be right.  It was probably some sort of secret passageway that requires the wind's power to work.  When I started the whirlwind, it triggered the passageway."

         "Alright, then my next question is," Felix replied, "Where are the others?"

         Sheba glanced around.  "I don't know why they didn't come with us.  And before you ask, I have no idea how we're going to get back."

         Felix looked at the Jupiter adept.  She merely smiled in return, tapping Felix's head with her staff.

         "Well," Felix said.  "Let's head down this tunnel and see if we can find a way back up."

         "Let's be careful," Sheba pointed out.  "We don't know what's down here."

         "Indeed," Felix said, and strode down the passage, his bad mood replaced by a powerful curiosity.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         Sheba followed Felix, keeping close behind in the oppressive darkness.  A dim light seemed to emanate from the walls, allowing the young girl to just make out the form of her companion ahead of her.  While she was a little nervous about their circumstances, having Felix there, protecting her as always, made her feel a little more secure.  Ever since she'd been kidnapped from her home in Lalivero, Felix had been the only one looking out for her.  It had been such a weird feeling, to have someone there for her, someone who seemed to understand her…

         "I think we've got company," Felix interrupted her thoughts, drawing his sword.

         Sheba tightened her grip on her staff and stepped forward to flank Felix.  Two dim shapes were blocking the passage in front of them.  Felix leapt forward and slashed his sword at the rightmost form, slashing its left arm clean off.  To Sheba's horror, the shadowy enemy barely seemed to notice, and attacked Felix, who backpedaled quickly.

         "They're undead!" Felix called, taking the mummified corpse's attack on the flat of his blade.

         Sheba moved into action, conjuring a Psynergetic tornado to attack the other form.  This enemy responded by raising its staff, and suddenly pale phantoms shot from his weapon, providing Sheba with a clear view of her emaciated attacker just before the spirits attacked.  Pain shot through Sheba's body, dropping her to one knee as the pain faded to an aching throb.  Felix finished dispatching his foe and turned to attack Sheba's assailant.  The dark mage dodged to the side, but unfortunately for it, ran straight into Sheba's plasma assault, disintegrating quickly.

         Felix helped Sheba to her feet.  "Are you alright?" he asked.  Sheba didn't need to read his mind to feel his concern.

         She coughed once and nodded in the darkness.  "Yeah, just a little shot.  We'd better be on our guard."

         Felix kept his sword in front of him as they continued down the path.  Sheba felt the pain begin to subside in her chest.  She hated fighting, and probably always would.  But when she was in Lalivero, she'd had foggy visions of a tall, dark form.  She'd never really understood them, but when Felix and Saturos had kidnapped her from Tolbi, she'd somehow felt that Felix was connected to her missing history.  When they reached Jupiter Lighthouse, hopefully she'd learn something about her clouded past, her missing origins, and her strange visions.  Until then, she'd stay with Felix.  And if she didn't learn anything, well, then maybe she could stop fighting.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         The twisting, winding passage had continued for close to an hour, by Felix's estimation.  But lately, it seemed to be sloping upwards.  Felix hoped that was a good sign.  There had been several encounters in the depths, and while none of them had been truly threatening, their endurance was being stretched severely.

         Felix took a step, feeling the ground give way slightly beneath his boot.  He paused, saying, "I think the moss has returned.  The ground is starting to squish."

         "I think the passage has been getting wider," Sheba added.  "Maybe we're getting close."

         "Let's keep going," Felix said, trying to inject some hope into his voice.

         He'd taken no more than five steps when Sheba yelled, "Felix, look out!"

         Before he could react, something rammed him violently from the side, sending the Venus adept sprawling into the slimy mosses.  Scrambling to his feet, Felix turned just in time to see Sheba blast his attacker with a plasma assault, suddenly lighting up the area and their assailant.  Felix blinked his eyes.  They were being attacked by a plant?

         Shoving his thoughts aside, Felix leapt to the attack, driving his sword at the main body of the beast.  Unfortunately, the plant showed surprising agility in leaping backwards, and Felix only managed to nick a single large petal.  The attacker gave a keening screech that echoed through the darkness, and Felix suddenly realized he was vulnerable to a counter-attack.  He stood, horrified, as the plant gathered itself and spat some viscous goo…

         …right at Sheba.

         The Jupiter adept gave one scream and fell backwards, wiping at her face.  Something inside of Felix snapped, and he took his sword and hurled it at his enemy with such force that it drove through the plant and into the nearby cave wall, pinning it.

Keening death throes emerged from the mortally wounded attacker, but Felix's rage was not satisfied.  He focused his Psynergy and summoned a Gaia explosion, burying his dying foe in a rockslide and bringing a deathly silence to the darkness.

         Felix stood there a moment, chest heaving, then ran over to Sheba and knelt by her side.  "Sheba, are you alright? Sheba, talk to me."

         The wind mage coughed violently, multiple times, then seemed to settle herself.  "I… I'm ok, it… it just stings, a lot."

         Felix cursed.  There was probably some sort of venom in that goo.  "Can you walk?" he asked her.

         Sheba brought herself to a sitting position, with Felix's hand on her back to support her.  "Yeah," she said shakily.

         Felix helped her up, wrenched his sword from the wall, and continued to slosh through the mossy passage.  They'd been going for about ten minutes when Sheba started to cough again behind him.

         "Sheba?"

         "I…I don't…don't feel…" she managed between coughs.  Suddenly, she fell to her knees and started vomiting, violently.

         Felix cursed over and over again as he rifled through his satchel.  Some of the venomous goo must have gotten in Sheba's mouth.  His cursing redoubled when he found no antidote in his bag.  Jenna had all their antidotes.

         He knelt next to Sheba as her retching continued.  "Sheba, can you hear me?"

         His only response was more vomiting.  Felix ripped off his gauntlet and touched Sheba's forehead with his palm.  His hand jumped away as if scalded.  She was burning up!

         "Felix…help…me!" Sheba whimpered between vomits.

         As he watched, horrified, Sheba crumpled to the ground, dry heaving as her stomach emptied completely.  Felix placed both his hands on her chest and focused his Psynergy, trying to find the poison and purge it from the increasingly frail body underneath him.  After a moment, he gave up, panicked.  His healing Psynergy wasn't nearly as powerful as Piers's, and this was beyond him.

         Unless he did something soon, Sheba was going to die.

**A/N:  And that's the start.  A little short, I know, but more should come soon.  Now, motivate me: Review please!**


	2. The Brink of Life

**Disclaimer: I do not own Golden Sun, as evidenced by the fact it took me three tries to spell it correctly.**

         Felix stumbled down the dim passage, the limp form of Sheba draped across his arms.  The winding passageway seemed more interminable with every step, each passing second.  He'd been lucky thus far: no enemies had blocked his path.  But pretty soon, luck wasn't going to be enough.  Sheba had fallen unconscious several minutes ago, and her breathing had become shallow and inconsistent.  In the dim light, her face looked as white as a sheet.  Felix knew she was fading fast. 

         And he was powerless to prevent it.

         Suddenly, the passage ahead of him seemed to widen into a small cavern.  Felix's heart leapt with a spark of hope.  He shifted Sheba's position in his arms and started to run forward, careening along the dark tunnel.  Soon he could see some flickering light around the corner, and he redoubled his efforts.  A set of short, broad steps greeted him, leading onto a small platform.  Two flickering torches flanked an exact replica of the miniature Gabomba Statue that he'd seen in the statue proper.  Felix stopped just short of the stairs, suddenly wary.  The passage dead ended here, winding back into the darkness behind him.  If this was a trap, he didn't have much choice.  Or time.

         He laid Sheba gently at the foot of the platform, then stepped up the short stairway.  His breath ghosted in the torchlight, the damp chill of the caves penetrating his armor.  His steps echoed as he stopped just in front of the statue, seeing a chest held in its stone cold arms.  Felix hesitated, then tilted open the chest.  A small, tattered book with a black cover lay nestled in the opening.  Felix looked around, then reached a hand in and took the book.  A sudden breeze swirled through the cavern, dimming the torches behind him, making the shadows on the walls seem to dance.  Felix shot a glance over his shoulder, uneasy.

         Suddenly, a familiar voice echoed in front of him.

         [I said the first here would receive it, and thus you have.]

         Felix looked into the now lit eyes of the Gabomba.

         [One thing: Do not tell Akafubu of this.  The Kibombo have need of his leadership, and such a setback may destroy his spirit.]

         "Please, Great Gabomba," Felix began, "my friend is very sick.  I'm afraid she'll… she'll die if she isn't cured soon.  Can you help her?"

         There was a short silence.  [I cannot cure her.]

         Felix's fist clenched on the ancient book in his hand, his head dropping.

         "There is nothing you can do?" Felix bit out.

         Another pause.  [This stairwell will lead you back to the statue proper.]

         Felix snapped his head back up and saw a stairway to the right of the idol.  He could have sworn that wasn't there earlier, but he wasn't going to question.  He stuffed the book into his satchel and ran back to Sheba.  He stooped to pick her up, then stopped suddenly.

         Sheba wasn't breathing.

         Felix panicked.  Sheba's face looked blue in the flickering light, her chest was still.  Felix ripped off his gauntlet and put his hand to Sheba's cheek.  The cold in her face seemed to drain into his blood, and Felix unclasped her cape and moved his hand to her neck, feeling desperately for a pulse.  He exhaled slowly: it was there, but weak and fluttering.

         Wasting no more time, the Venus adept gathered the still form into his arms and sprinted towards the stairwell, hearing one word as he left.

         [Hurry.]

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         Jenna was worried, and that only served to make her angrier.  It had been over three hours since Felix and Sheba had disappeared through that portal thing, and still they had not returned.  She, Piers, and Kraden had been unable to find a way to follow them through the portal.  Kraden had mumbled something about a "cyclone," but that didn't help them without Sheba's wind powers.  Jenna cursed under her breath for the umpteenth time, and resumed her pacing around the cavern.

         Piers shifted uneasily in the center of the cave.  "Jenna, I know you're worried, but there's really nothing we can do…"

         "I'm not worried!" Jenna screamed.

         "Of course not," Piers said smoothly.  "Felix and Sheba will find their way out on their own, correct?"

         "Of course they will," Jenna said quickly.  Too quickly.

         "And there's nothing else we can do here." Piers stated, rather than questioned.

         "Yeah," Jenna trailed off.

         "So we should return to the village an-"

         "No!" Jenna yelled emphatically.  "We have to be here when they get back."

         Piers made a nervous gesture with his hand.  Jenna knew she was being illogical, but she didn't really care.  She'd lost her brother once, three years ago, and she wasn't about to leave him alone in some dank cave.

         Jenna resumed her pacing.  After several minutes, Piers spoke suddenly.

         "Jenna, stop walking."

         Jenna glanced over at the Lemurian, deciding to take out some of her frustration by annoying the stoic Mercury adept.  "Aw, am I getting on your nerves, Piers?"

         "Jenna, just stop.  Now."

         Jenna halted in place, more out of surprise than anything else.  The quiet Lemurian was rarely this pushy.  But as Jenna stopped, her footsteps continued.  Jenna leapt in excitement, realizing someone else was near.

         "Felix?  Felix, are you there?"

         "Jenna?" came a dim reply.

         The footsteps quickened and seemed to draw closer.  Jenna ran over to one of the ledges on the cave walls just as Felix emerged from a hidden stairwell.  Jenna's face fell when she saw what he carried.

         Sheba's motionless body lay in his arms.

         "Oh, my god," she whispered.

         "What happened?" Piers called, running over with Kraden.

         Felix scrambled over to the edge, kneeling just before the six-foot drop.  "I think she's poisoned!  She was coughing and throwing up, and now she's not-" Felix's voice broke.  Jenna's heart fell as she listened to him.  Sheba was… dead?

         Piers reached up and took the limp body.  "Does she have a pulse?"

         Felix leapt down, landing heavily next to his sister.  "Yes, but it's weak and fluttering."

         Piers found a dry patch of ground and laid Sheba down, comfortably.  "Then there's still a chance.  Felix, try to get her breathing again while I get some herbs ready."

         Jenna backed out of the way as a bustle of activity started.  Piers ran for Jenna's bag and the herbs.  Not wanting to be totally useless, Jenna asked, "What can I do?"

         Piers glanced up at her before continuing to rifle through the backpack.  "Run into the village and get us some rooms at the inn.  I'm not going to be able to heal her entirely here, and she'll need the rest tonight."

         Jenna nodded.  She went to leave and nearly ran into Felix.  The haunted look in his eyes froze her in place.

         "Felix, are you alright?"

         Her brother moved to Sheba's side.  "Only if she is," he muttered.****

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         Push.

         Push.

         Push.

         Breathe.

         Felix's desperation was growing.  He'd gotten little response out of the still Jupiter adept.  He'd removed her battle robe to get down to her tunic and started pounding on her chest, hoping to force her lungs to start pumping again.

         Nothing was working.

         At a loss, Felix repeated his routine, pushing rhythmically against Sheba's chest.  As he fitted his mouth over her cold lips, he tried not to think about what would happen if she was…

         No, he refused to think that.  As he exhaled into her mouth, he willed his life to transfer into her.  He pounded twice more on her chest and stopped when he felt movement beneath him.  Hardly daring to hope, Felix looked at Sheba's face.  He held his hand just above her mouth, then sagged in relief.

         Air.

         "Piers! She's breathing!" Felix called.

         The Lemurian walked over.  "Well done, Felix.  Let me give her a potion."  He knelt over Sheba's form and poured a small amount of liquid into Sheba's open mouth, then held it closed with his hand.  The wind adept coughed violently, and Piers let go of her mouth.  Sheba's breathing seemed to have stabilized; it was shallow, but consistent.

         "That should keep her breathing until we get to the inn.  There I can work on purging her completely."

         Felix picked up the Jupiter adept as Piers gathered her armor and Jenna's satchel.

         "Let's go," Piers said.

         They reached the inn and found Jenna waiting for them in the lobby.

         "Is she OK?" she asked worriedly.

"She's breathing, but she's still unconscious.  Where are the rooms?" Piers asked.

"We've got the only two rooms they have.  Sheba can have the one with the bed," Jenna replied, making a face.

"Which one is it?" Felix asked as he strode towards the stairs.

"The one on the left.  Kraden's already in the one on the right."

"Thanks," Felix called over his shoulder as he mounted the stairs, Piers close behind.  Felix pushed upon the door to the room and entered.

"Hang on a second, Felix," Piers called behind him.  The Mercury adept pulled the covers on the bed down to the foot and motioned silently.  Felix laid Sheba on the bed and backed away.  Piers removed his gauntlets and his sword, handing them to Felix, who placed them on the table.  When he turned back, Piers had already begun to heal Sheba's emaciated body.  A pale blue glow enveloped the two adepts and the bed, and Felix was left with nothing to do but wait.

Felix slowly began to remove his own armor, peeling off his gauntlets and tossing them in the corner.  This wasn't supposed to happen, he thought.  When he'd conspired with Saturos and Menardi to steal the Elemental Stars, he was supposed to be the bad guy.  The responsibility was to be his alone.  Jenna had been dragged along, and he'd done his best to protect her, both from Saturos and from himself.  Felix sighed as he unclasped his sword, leaning it against the wall in the corner of the room.  Now he'd dragged Sheba into it, as well.

No matter how hard he seemed to try, he managed to put others at risk.  Thus far, he'd been lucky, and no one had been seriously hurt.  But today, Sheba had almost died.  And it had been his fault.  Felix unclasped his armor and placed it next to his sword, then sat at the table and began to work on his boots.  If anyone had to be hurt, Felix would rather it be him.  He'd started this mess, and he'd be the one to either see it through or fail.  He tossed his boots into the corner, then slumped backwards in his chair.

If anyone ever got hurt, he'd never manage to forgive himself.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         A couple hours later, Felix was awakened by a tap on his shoulder.  He started, not realizing he'd been asleep, then relaxed when he saw Piers's face.

         "I thought you'd be interested to know that Sheba's going to make it," Piers said.

         Felix let out a relieved sigh.  "Thanks a lot, Piers."  He paused when he saw the exhaustion in the Lemurian's face.  "How are you?"

         "I'm quite drained, actually.  The poison was quite bad, and it took nearly all of my Psynergy to purge it from her." The Lemurian ran a tired hand through his blue hair.  "She's still asleep, and probably will be for a while, but someone should watch over her in case she does wake up."

         Felix stood up.  "I'll keep an eye on her.  You look like you need some rest."

         "Thanks, Felix," Piers said, grabbing his sword and gauntlets from the table.  He and the Venus adept clasped arms.

         "No, thank you, Piers."

         "Goodnight," the Lemurian said as he left.

         Felix walked over to the bed and looked at Sheba.  The color had returned to her face, and her breathing was even and normal.  Felix brought the covers up and tucked them around the sleeping girl, then moved his hand to her forehead.  Her skin felt smooth and cool beneath his rough, calloused palms.  For the first time in several hours, she looked peaceful, and Felix finally allowed himself to relax.  Pulling up a chair, he sat next to the wind adept, preparing for his night's vigil.

         His mind wandered ahead, planning out their next moves.  Once Sheba was fully recovered, they could set out across the center of Gondowan.  They'd probably have to camp just before the mountains on the first night, but hopefully they'd reach Naribwe on the second night.  Then they could make it through to Osenia and be on with their trip.

         With the near future somewhat planned out, Felix drifted to the events of the day.  All their pains to sneak into the statue had gone for naught, since they'd ended up staying at the inn anyway.  Hopefully, the fiery witch doctor, Akafubu, wouldn't realize they had been here until they were long gone.

         Speaking of Akafubu, Felix suddenly recalled the words of the Gabomba.  "_Do not tell Akafubu of this."  Felix had forgotten the tattered black book he'd found in the cave.  He glanced at Sheba's sleeping form, then stood and walked over to his satchel, gently removing the ancient tome.  _

The leathery black cover was surprisingly warm to the touch.  Felix turned the book over in his hands.  Strange red glyphs were imprinted into the cover, in a language Felix didn't recognize.  A piece of the cover was dislodged from Felix's touch and landed on the floor.  It almost seemed like the book was rotting in his hands.  Intrigued, Felix gingerly lifted the cover.

         Suddenly, a cool breeze blew through the open window, flipping through the pages in the tome.  Whisperings sounded in the room around Felix, who shivered, glancing over at the flying curtains.  Placing the leathery book on his chair, Felix walked over and shut the window, shaking his head.  It must really have been a long day, if he was hearing voices in an otherwise empty room.  Felix crossed the room and checked on Sheba, who was still asleep.  Felix picked up the black book, again surprised by how warm it felt.  Glancing around the empty room one last time, the Venus adept sat, opened the book, and began to read the scrawled handwriting contained within the tattered pages.

         Beside him, Sheba shifted uncomfortably in her sleep.

**Author's Note: I didn't kill ****Sheba**** off, so don't attack me!  Review responses:**

**Smurf Cat:  I'm glad you're enjoying this!  I'm enjoying writing the Felix/Sheba interaction here.  They're an interesting couple.  Thanks for the review!**

**Empress Dotdotdot: Here's some more! And it's even soon!  I've never quite seen as much possibility in Windshipping than in Felix/Sheba, so I prefer them as well.  This is gonna be at most another four chapters, but if I ever reach a novelization of TLA, it will be Felix/Sheba as well.  Thanks for the encouragement!**

**Hedwig: Here's your update! Thanks!**

**ChibiD: I'm not yet sure if I'm going to raise the rating.  I may need to, in order to achieve the proper effects later on.  I also haven't decided if this is going to have a happy ending or not.  I can see both happening.**

**And I made ****Sheba**** better!  Thanks for your review, and here's the update!**

**That's all for now.  Thanks to everyone who reviewed, and for those who haven't, the button's in the corner! Thanks!**

**-AE**


	3. Fallout

**Disclaimer: insert witty disclaimer explaining how I don't own Golden Sun here**

**Author's Note:  It's a good thing I posted this story when I did; another story about the Tomegathericon was posted only two days later.  They insist they did not "steel," so I believe them.  I hope this story continues to please its readers!**

**Oh, and the first person to tell me where I got my foreign language from gets a cookie!  Or a lollipop!**

         Sheba glanced around.  The bright day had suddenly become dark and dreary, with large clouds threatening overhead.  The fire they'd made to cook lunch flickered and danced with sinister purpose, and Sheba was suddenly cold.  The landscape seemed surreal somehow, like it was mocking Sheba's reality.

         She glanced next to her, where Jenna had stood suddenly.  The Mars adept then leapt forward, palm extended, and incinerated a pair of zombies that had attacked their camp.  Sheba glanced towards the other side and saw Piers slicing away at yet more of the undead warriors.

         Before her, several more undead zombies shuffled forward at alarming speed.  Sheba went into action, blasting the first group with a plasma attack, then using a whirling tornado to fling the remainder to the side.  The battle seemed to be going well, she thought, and then she saw him.

         A dark shadow stood before her, strangely familiar, yet utterly unrecognizable.  The shadow's hand stretched out, and Sheba heard a strange incantation sound out.

         "_Xopoj ev xocc, rhadw vehkx kxo taho advohde!_"

         The shadow flung something toward Piers, and glowing hexes seemed to surround the Lemurian, boxing him in.  All of a sudden, the hexes exploded, and the Lemurian disappeared, immolated in the sheets of flame that had engulfed him.

         Sheba took a horrified step backwards as the shadow turned to Jenna.  She tried to shout out a warning, but her feeble voice was drowned out by the ghastly chant.

         "_Cok feajed vcen vhoo!_"

         A blast of foul air extended from the shadow's palm, wrapping itself around the helpless Mars adept.  She sagged visibly, ceasing her Psynergetic assault on the undead warriors.

         "_Den ukkusb, tomedj!_"

         Sheba watched, aghast, as demons leapt up from the earth around the weakened adept.  Jenna drew her sword, but lacked the strength to fend off the hellish beasts for long.  Sheba turned away just as her friend was overwhelmed, her chilling scream echoing in her mind.

         The shadow had turned to her now.  As the wind adept stood, frozen in fear, the shadow started chanting a single word with increasing volume.

         "_Kemo-wukxo-hased._"

         "_Kemo-wukxo-hased."_

The outline of a large tome formed in the middle of the shadow, gradually gaining substance.

         "_Kemo-wukxo-hased!_"

         "_Kemo-wukxo-hased!_"

         Even though she couldn't see it, Sheba felt the shadow smile sadistically at her.

         "_KEMO-WUKXO-HASED!!_"

         "_KEMO-WUKXO-HASED!!_"

         Sheba screamed as the book flew towards her…

         …and sat bolt upright in bed, panting.

         Sheba took several deep breaths, attempting to calm her frazzled nerves.  A dream.  It had just been a dream.  Sheba looked around, frowning at her unfamiliar surroundings.  Where was she?

         The Jupiter adept was comforted somewhat by the sight of Felix, sprawled in a chair, sleeping.  Her memories began to come back, slowly.  They'd been caught in that ghastly tunnel, and she'd been poisoned by that plant-like thing.  Apparently, Felix had managed to get them out of that tunnel alive.  Sheba glanced over at the sleeping Venus adept, then blushed as she realized she'd been stripped to her dress-like undertunic.  She shook her head at her own shyness.  Obviously, she'd needed some fairly extensive healing.

         The morning sun peeked in on Sheba as she fell back on the bed, her thoughts returning to her dream.  Such a horrible dream it had been!  Jenna and Piers, both… Sheba shut her eyes at the memory.  She'd been having visions for most of her life, but sorting out the visions from simple dreams had always been impossible.  Until she'd visited Air's Rock, that is.

         Air's Rock had given her the power to see the future in short spurts, and Sheba had been slowly mastering that power.  It was almost like a voluntary daydream, where the Jupiter adept could use her Psynergy to foresee conversations from that day's lunch, or dreams that she later had that night.  Sheba hadn't really tried it on anything important yet, content to build her skill without any potential complications.  But something about this chilling dream was sticking in her head.  If it was a vision, Sheba had to find some way to prevent it.

         Her mind resolved, Sheba sat up in bed, drawing on her Psynergy.  After a few seconds, however, she sank back onto her bed, drained.  That poison had taken much more out of her than she'd thought; her Psynergy was still very weak.  The young adept tried not to think about how close she might have come to death.  She was suddenly that much more grateful to have Felix as her protector.

         Suddenly, an odd thought struck Sheba.  Where had Felix been in her dream?

         She was about to pursue that thought when a knock sounded on the door.  After a slight pause, the door creaked open and Jenna stuck her head in.

         "Oh, Sheba! You're awake!" the Mars adept said softly, closing the door behind her.

         "Hey, Jenna," Sheba replied, sitting up and smiling.

         "How are you feeling?" Jenna asked, sitting on the bed next to her.

         "Other than being very tired, I feel okay.  Where are we?"

         Jenna glanced over at her brother, who was still sound asleep.  "We're at the inn in Kibombo.  We brought you here… to heal you."

         Sheba was quiet at that statement.  "Where are the others?" she asked, changing the subject.

         "Kraden is downstairs, arranging for breakfast.  Piers was just waking up when I left, and I guess my brother is still asleep."

         "Piers slept this late?  That's not like him."

         Jenna avoided the younger girl's gaze.  "I guess he used a lot of his energy to heal you last night."

         "Jenna," Sheba started, waiting for the Mars adept to meet her gaze.  "how… bad was it?"

         Jenna sighed, but did not break from her gaze.  "When Felix finally reappeared, carrying you, you'd stopped breathing."  Sheba gasped softly.  

"Piers got some herbs ready while Felix tried to jump start your lungs again," Jenna continued in an even tone.  "I got the rooms at the inn, and they brought you in here, where Piers healed you."

Sheba was stunned.  She'd been on the brink of death, and only Felix and Piers had brought her back.  She glanced over at the sleeping Venus adept.

Jenna followed her gaze, and smiled knowingly.  "He was worried sick about you, you know."

Sheba returned her eyes to the older girl, blushing.  "I…I'm sure I had everyone very worried."

Jenna nodded, still smiling.  "But now it's a couple hours after dawn, and we're getting ready to leave this stinking mud puddle and head back east.  Do you think you'll be up for it?"

Sheba stretched briefly and yawned.  "Yeah, I think I'll be able to keep up with you guys."

"Good," Jenna declared, standing.  "I think it's time for Sleepy over here to wake up."  And with that, she shoved the slumbering adept off his chair.  Felix awoke with a bump, glancing around wildly and fending off his unseen assailant.  Sheba laughed at his awkward position.  It felt good to laugh again.

"Rise and shine, big brother," Jenna taunted, helping him to his feet.

"What was that for?" Felix moaned, rubbing his eyes drowsily.

"It's three hours past dawn, and you're the last one up!" Jenna reprimanded.  "Even Sheba's awake!"

Felix blinked and looked over at Sheba, heaving a relieved sigh.  "Sheba! How are you feeling?"

Jenna came around to the foot of the bed.  "If you hadn't been sleeping, you'd have realized-"

Her sentence was cut short by Felix's hand clamping over her mouth.  Sheba laughed at the startled expression in Jenna's eyes.  "I'm doing much better now, Felix, thanks to you."

Felix refused to meet her eyes.  "Piers was the one who healed you, you should thank him."

Jenna forced her brother's hand away from her mouth.  "And she would, except that you've been sleeping in her room."

Felix eyed his sister skeptically.  "And your point is?"

Jenna threw up her hands in mock exasperation.  "She can't very well get dressed with you standing here!"

Sheba blushed furiously, glaring at the Mars adept.  Felix's face also seemed to turn a few shades redder as Jenna rolled her eyes.

"Come on," she said, grabbing her brother's arm.  "I need someone besides Kraden to eat breakfast with, or he'll talk my ear off!"  She looked over at Sheba.  "We'll give you some privacy now, okay?"  And with that, the siblings were gone.

Sheba found herself smiling and shaking her head.  One of these days, she'd have to get back at Jenna.  Maybe she'd casually drop Isaac's name…

Already plotting her revenge, Sheba began to get dressed.

*               *               *               *               *               *

Felix looked up at the towering Kibombo Mountains.  They'd made much better time today than he'd dared to hope.  There seemed to be a few hours left before dawn at least, and he wanted to press through the mountains and hopefully reach Naribwe before nightfall.  He glanced back at his followers and read determination in their faces.  Sheba's escape had seemed to energize the team, and even though they hadn't started until after lunch, they'd reached the mountains in half a day.

Felix had been most worried about Sheba.  He hadn't been sure how she would hold up after her ordeal, but even she looked like she could keep going.  They'd already lost considerable time off their quest.  Felix ran a hand through his hair.

"Let's try to get to Naribwe tonight," he announced, turning to gauge his team's reaction.

Felix caught Piers's eyes widening slightly.  Jenna simply nodded.

"Are you sure that's a wise idea, Felix?"

Felix turned towards the aged scholar.  "As long as Sheba feels up to it, I'm sure we'll be fine, Kraden."

"We don't want to be stranded in the mountains as night is falling," Kraden pointed out.

"Kraden, we've been through these mountains three times already.  I think I know how much time it takes to get through them!" Felix cried out, exasperated.

"Please," Sheba interrupted.  "I feel fine.  Let's just get through the mountains and see where we stand then."

Kraden looked like he was going to continue the argument when Jenna stomped on his foot, smiling sweetly.****

Felix turned and began to climb the steep slope.  Sheba followed behind him, then Jenna and Kraden, with Piers bringing up the rear.

Kraden had been getting increasingly on Felix's nerves.  The scholar was a wealth of information on Alchemy, but little to no help when it came to actually running an expedition.  Kraden had all sorts of suggestions, and would get disgruntled when Felix didn't follow his propositions.  Thus far, the Venus adept had had the support of his fellow adepts, but that hadn't stopped Kraden and his inane ideas.

"I never thought I would travel this much," Sheba said behind him.

"I never wanted to travel this much," Felix commented wryly.

Sheba gave a small laugh behind him.  "Well aren't we lucky?"

Felix shook his head.  "Sometimes I wonder."

*               *               *               *               *               *

Three hours and two mountains later, the party halted at the edge of a forest of elm trees.  Felix threw his sword down in disgust.  Jenna had twisted an ankle on the descent of the first mountain, and Piers had half-carried her through the rest of the mountains.  They'd still lost considerable time, and now they were forced to camp here for the night.

         He unfurled one of the blankets and laid it out on a soft patch of grass.  "Help her over here," he directed Piers.  The Lemurian helped Jenna limp over and collapse onto the makeshift bed.  Jenna winced in pain as Piers gingerly slipped her boot off.  Felix growled at the sight of Jenna's badly swollen ankle.

         "Can you do anything, Piers?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

         "Well, I can lessen the pain and put some ice on it to reduce the swelling," Piers replied hesitatingly.  "It's going to have to heal naturally.  I don't know how long it will be."

         Felix turned away, exasperated.  "Do what you can."  He looked at the rest of his group.  "Let's try to set up camp."

         Sheba moved to help set up the bedding with Felix.  As they unfurled blankets, she spoke softly to Felix.

         "What are we going to do if Jenna can't walk?"

         "I have no idea," Felix growled in response.

Sheba worked silently beside him for a moment.  "Are you all right?" she asked suddenly.

Felix threw another of the blankets to the ground.  "Nothing is going right.  We should have been sailing by now, and instead were stuck in this, this interminable wilderness," he bit out, glaring furiously at the bedroll beneath him.

He felt Sheba's small hand touch his shoulder.  "Maybe we should take a day or two to recuperate.  It's been a rough trip for everyone recently.  We could get to Naribwe tomorrow and rest there until we're-"

Felix met Sheba's gaze suddenly.  "We can't afford to wait any longer," he bit out emphatically.

         Sheba looked faintly surprised, her hand falling from Felix's shoulder.  "If Jenna can't walk, we're not going to make it very far."

         "We can't afford to waste any more time.  We already lost enough going back to the catacombs, for all the good that did us!" Felix argued vehemently, his voice rising.  He glared over to where Jenna lay.

         "It wasn't her fault we lost all that time," Sheba put in.

         "I know perfectly well whose fault it was!" Felix yelled angrily.  The camp was deathly still, all others stopped by Felix's outburst.

         Seeing Sheba's shocked expression, Felix suddenly realized what he was doing.  "I… I'm sorry, Sheba, I…"

         The young wind mage looked away, silently.  He'd hurt her.  Yet another stupid mistake he'd made.

         "I'll go get some firewood," he finished bitterly.

         The leaves trembled in the cold wind as he passed into the shadows of the forest.  

**A/N: If anyone here reads my Zelda story, The Sages' Might, chapter six should be out in a couple days.  Review responses:**

**Smurf Cat: I'm glad this story is surprising you! Pleasantly, I hope.  I'm not a big fan of lemons, but thanks for the offer!**

**Plot line, shmot line.  Minor details, if you ask me ;).**

**Vyctori: Nice pen name!  I believe the Felix/Sheba couple has the most romantic potential… which is why I write them!  This story is shorter because that's how far the plot takes it.  Depending on how I end this story and the response from reviewers, I may do a sequel.  **

**Felix is a bit tricky, not only to define a believable personality, but to have it change and develop in the course of the story.  I think I've got the first part fairly well, and we'll see how I do with the second.  You get a taste of ****Sheba**** in this chapter.**

**Oh, and I couldn't kill ****Sheba**** off.**

**Yet.**

**Thanks for the review!**

**Thanks also to Darkcomet, Lord of Darkness, who put me on his favorite authors list.  Only two reviews from last chapter, so only three of my fabulous readers have to review for me to improve!  Please, press that button!**

**Until next time,**

**-AE**


	4. Night Whispers

**Disclaimer: The Golden Sun franchise seems to be the property of person or persons other than myself.**

**Author's Note: Life at college has finally settled down to the point where I could write a little!  This chapter is a little short, but hopefully the next one won't take nearly as long to put out.  Enjoy!**

         As Felix disappeared into the forest, Sheba listlessly finished setting up the bedding for the night, her thoughts a jumbled mess.  That hadn't been at all like Felix, to scream at her like that.  What had she done to upset him so badly?

         The young wind adept shivered as a chill breeze blew in with the night.  Darkness had closed in quickly on the party, leaving them ill-prepared.  Sheba gave the last bedroll a shove, watching it unfurl towards the campfire circle that Piers was clearing out.  The air was heavy, and if Sheba knew anything about the wind, a storm was coming some time tomorrow.  She sat silently, absorbed in her thoughts.

         "Hey, Sheba," a voice came.

         The wind mage emerged from her daze and glanced over at Jenna, who smiled and motioned her over.  Sheba stood and stumbled over to sit by the injured adept.

         "How's your ankle?"

         "It's a bit painful," Jenna admitted, shifting the ice block Piers had provided her.  "Hopefully it will heal up for tomorrow morning."

         "Yeah," Sheba offered noncommittally.  Felix would almost certainly want an early start.

         "Hey," Jenna said, interrupting the young girl's wandering thoughts.  Sheba blushed as she realized how preoccupied she was.

         "I'm sorry," she apologized.  "I just…"

         The sentence trailed off, her gaze shifting to the forest.  Beside her, Jenna sighed softly.

         "My brother can be really stupid sometimes," the Mars adept grumbled.  Sheba looked at the older girl and met her surprisingly strong stare.  "He doesn't blame you, you know."

         Sheba was surprised.  "Well… why else would he yell at me?" she wondered.

         "He's upset.  And he's frustrated.  But not with you," Jenna said pointedly.  "He's angry at himself."

         Sheba looked back to the ever-darkening forest.  "Why in Weyard would he be angry with himself?"

         "For making the decision to try the mountains.  For agreeing to come back to Kibombo in the first place," Jenna offered.  She fixed her gaze on the wind adept once more.  "But I'd guess he's most upset about failing to protect you."

         "But he saved my life!" Sheba protested.

         "Yes, he did, but that's not the way he sees it," Jenna sighed.  "In his view, if he had protected you properly, he wouldn't have had to save your life."

         Sheba mulled that over for a moment.  "That's absurd."

         Jenna smiled in the darkness.

         "Hey, Jenna," Piers called from the campfire.  "A little light here?"

         "Too dark for a big, strong Lemurian?" the Mars adept teased.

         "Just thought you might like some food, Jenna," came the retort.

         Jenna gave a small cry of mock-indignation.  "Have it your way, then."  She cupped her palm and made a half-circle in the air, creating a small sphere of flame which she floated in the Lemurian's direction.  Piers encased the flame in a hollow ice-ball and began rummaging around in the packs.

         Sheba watched the water adept for a silent moment.  "Why does he put so much pressure on himself?"

         Jenna gazed towards the forest.  "Only he really knows that.  I would guess it has something to do with his guilt."

         "Guilt?" Sheba echoed.

         "He was the one who conspired to steal the Elemental Stars.  This was supposed to be his quest, without endangering those he loves," Jenna explained.  "Whenever someone else gets hurt, he blames himself.  He doesn't want others to suffer for his decisions."

         Sheba sat quietly, poking at the grass with the toe of her boot.  Jenna shifted her ankle again and sighed heavily.

         "I worry about him," she murmured, half to herself.  "He puts too much pressure on himself."

         Sheba glanced once more at the forest that concealed the Venus adept.  Jenna, it seemed, was correct.

         The young girl sighed internally and sent out a short prayer.

         _It's not your fault, Felix_.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         The Venus adept stomped through the forest, casting about for firewood.  The forest was gloomy in the rapidly retreating twilight.  The thin branches cast crooked shadows as they brushed against Felix's steel armor.

         "Stupid," he mumbled angrily, snatching a branch from the ground.

         He couldn't believe he'd snapped at her like that.  She'd only been trying to comfort him, and he taken her comfort and spurned it.

         She'd probably be mad at him now.  Hell, he would have been angry if he was in her place. She had every right to be angry at him.

         And yet, somehow he knew she wouldn't be.  And that just made him more upset with himself.

         He yanked a couple more branches out of the dirt, plunging deeper into the dark forest.  They were stuck here for the night, stuck trying to set up camp in a losing race against nightfall. He shouldn't have pressed through the mountains.  It was his fault they were stuck in this predicament.Nothing he did ever turned out right.

         For that matter, they wouldn't even have had to cross the mountains if he hadn't led them into that dank cave beneath the statue.  That had nearly gotten Sheba killed, and Felix didn't want to think about what he would have done if she'd been lost.

         He should have kept them on course.  They should have sailed for Lemuria directly, instead of making this ill-adviseddetour.

         It was his fault.

         He stormed onward, fueled by his seething rage.  A stiff breeze continued to blow through the skeletal trees, whipping his cape and further cluttering his furious mind.

         The worst part about it was that everyone knew that he'd made a mistake.  Jenna was probably spitting flames at him.  Piers wouldn't say, but Felix knew that he would have disagreed with his course of action.  Kraden never agreed with what he did.

         And Sheba… she had just been trying to make the best of his mess.  She'd wanted to divert his frustration and salvage what she could.  She hadn't really cared about him.  Not that she should have, as worthless as he was.  Everything that had transpired, including her abduction, was his fault.  He was to blame; he alone.

         The Venus adept stopped suddenly, his hand clenched on a length of firewood.  The wind picked up, swirling his thoughts beyond his control.  They probably all hated him by now.  And maybe it was better that way.

         Maybe he needed to go alone.

         Yes, that would work.  He could get them all back to Madra, and then strike out on his own.  That way, when he made his mistakes, he could deal with them on his own and not hinder anyone else.

         That way, when it was his fault…

         _It's not your fault, Felix._

         SNAP!

         Felix blinked rapidly in the still air, pain shooting up his arm.  He glanced down to see the branch he'd been holding had snapped in half, slicing his right hand in the process.  The blood trickled slowly down his palm as he glanced around, disoriented.  He wiped the bloodon his tunic and shifted the bundle of firewood in the crook of his left arm, trying to retrace his thoughts.  But they were gone, as elusive as the shadows that had disappeared in the darkness of the night.

         The Venus adept felt a great weariness settle into his bones.  It was getting late fast.  He gathered up a few last branches, then began the trek back to camp.  He could eat, get what sleep he could, and be ready for an early start the next morning.

         But first, he needed to talk to Sheba.  And apologize once again for his stupid mistakes.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         The meal had been very quiet.  Felix had been a long time in returning with the firewood, but once Jenna got the fire started the meal had cooked fairly rapidly.  Kraden had babbled on harmlessly on some strange aspect of the terrain, Jenna had complained about the cold breeze, and Piers had been his usual quiet self.  Sheba herself had stayed quiet, keeping a surreptitious eye on Felix.  He hadn't said a word since his return, and she didn't need her mind powers to read the anxiety in his demeanor.

         Sheba finished the last spoonful of her bland meal.  The little conversation had wound down, leaving an eerie stillness about the camp.  Even the wind had stopped.

         Suddenly, Felix stood.  "We should all get to bed," he stated, a little too loudly.  "I'd like to get an early start tomorrow."

         Jenna grumbled under her breath, tossed her bowl towards the packs, and flopped backwards onto her bedroll.  Kraden walked over to the bedrolls slowly, still mumbling something about tectonic plates and mountain ranges. 

Sheba half-crawled over to her bedroll, unclasping her boots and slipping them off.  She began to work on her armor when Felix walked over and sat stiffly beside her.  Sheba quelled her rising curiosity and waited patiently.****

         "Sheba," Felix started.

         The wind mage waited through the ensuing silence.

         "Sheba, I- I'm sorry," he managed, slumping slightly.  "I shouldn't have yelled at you.  I… I was frustrated, I guess."

         "I appreciate the apology," she replied, "but you know this isn't your fault."

         Felix hesitated.  "There's nothing to be done about it now," he said evasively.

         Sheba looked him in the eye.  "Felix, stop being so hard on yourself!"  The earth adept turned his head away from her, the firelight flickering over his pained face.  Sheba put her hand on his, then pulled away as she felt the beginnings of a scab.

"What happened to your hand?" she asked, moving her hand to his arm.

Felix shrugged.  "I cut it while I was gathering the firewood.  It's not a big deal."  Sheba held onto his arm firmly as he tried to pull away.

         "Felix, I'm worried about you," Sheba said resolutely.  "You can't keep putting this pressure on yourself.  It's not your fault."

         Felix met her gaze, the intensity in his brown eyes surprising Sheba.  "But it _is my fault."_

         "No, it isn't," Sheba sighed.  "It's not your fault that Jenna tripped on a rock.  It's not your fault that Kraden was so set on returning here.  But it is your fault," she continued, softening her gaze, "that I'm still alive."

         Felix opened his mouth, then seemed to think better of it.

         "Felix, nobody does everything correctly.  If they did, we wouldn't be in this position.  You can blame yourself for your mistakes, but you should remember the good things you do as well."

         "Sheba-"

         A loud hiss interrupted Felix's protest as the firelight flickered and died.  Sheba turned to see Piers retiring to his bedroll, then glanced back at the sullen Venus adept.

         She sighed aloud.  "Felix, you can't save the world overnight."

Felix still seemed unconvinced.  Then something in his demeanor shifted.  "Yeah, I guess you're right," he sighed.

         Sheba smiled softly, glad for any progress.  Felix stood up.  "You should get some sleep.  It's going to be a long day tomorrow."

         Sheba used her grip on his arm to stand up next to him.  "Try to forgive yourself, Felix.  Because I'll never forgive you for saving my life."  Hesitating briefly, Sheba stretched up and kissed him on the cheek.

         He was silent for a heartbeat, maybe two.  "Goodnight, Sheba," he said softly.

         "Goodnight," she breathed as his dim figure retreated into the darkness.  A small smile on her lips, she settled in to sleep.****

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         Felix turned the tattered page slowly, absorbing the strange text in the pale moonlight.  His cold breath fluttered the ancient parchment in the deathly stillness of the cool night air.  The leathery cover was warm against the dried blood on his hand.

         He wanted to believe her.  Wanted to so desperately.  But he knew, deep down, that she was just smoothing over the issue, for his sake.

         _She's just using you… using you for the quest._

The quest that he had chosen to undertake.  The quest that wasn't supposed to affect anyone else.  And yet he'd kidnapped her from her home.

         _She still resents you for that.  She doesn't care._

         But she'd seemed so genuinely concerned for him.  His free hand brushed briefly against his cheek, remembering the soft touch of her lips.

         _Lips that speak lies.  Lips that deceive_.

         No, she hadn't been trying to fool him.

         Or had she?

         _You tried to apologize to her_.  The rotting page turned with a whisper.  _She ignored your apology._

         She'd ignored his simple apology and tried to divert him.

_She brought up all your mistakes._  A brief gust rattled the pages of the tome.  _Made you face them again._

His mistakes… his failures…

         _Yes, that's right.  Your failures._

His failures… and she'd said she would never forgive him.

         _She won't forgive you.  _The ancient runes seemed to taunt him.  _None of them will._

         They wouldn't forgive him.  They would continue to hate him for his failures.

         _As they should.  You're a failure._

         The scrawling text blurred in front of his eyes.

         _Failure._

         He shut his eyes, trying to ward off some unseen assailant.

         _Failure._

The tears started down his cold face, dripping onto the rough parchment.

         _Failure._

"_Xocf mo jeic," he whispered to the blackness._

            ****

**A/N: Shadow-Dragon5 wins the language contest!  'Twas from Star Fox Adventures.  Some quick review responses:**

**Griffinkhan****:  I'm glad you find this interesting! Sorry it took so long to update.  Hope you enjoy!**

**Empress Dotdotdot: Are you quite certain that Jenna and Piers dying can't be real? insert evil laughter here**

**You are correct… Felix doesn't quite seem to be himself.  Here's the next update!**

**Vyctori****: No, no, I'm not trying to kill you… I only kill the characters… possibly…**

**It's good that I'm making you nervous, though.  I'm still keeping people off-balance!  Felix's downward spiral is continuing, with more depressive stuff on the horizon… but it could still turn out well in the end…**

**Thanks for the review!**

**chibiD****: Did he get angry… or did he lose control?  Thanks for the review!**

**Yugi**** the Other White Meat:  Thanks for the encouragement!  Sorry I've left you hanging so long… I'll try to do better in the future!**

**Hedwig: Rest assured, I only kill off my characters if I have a very good reason to do so.**

**E-100 Alpha: Dullahan may indeed have a role to play… unless I decide he's too extreme at this point (after all, they haven't even boarded the ship yet).**

**Debrishipping**** is a good idea… how about Fateshipping?  Thanks for the review!**

**Chibi**** procrastinator: Felix is nice to people for now… as for lemons, they're generally graphic love scenes between two (or more) people.**

**Thanks for the review!**

**Zelda the 7th Sage(x3): I'm glad you're enjoying the story! Thanks for your reviews!**

**Smurf Cat: I'm glad I've made your favorites! Sorry the update took so long!**

**Shadow-Dragon5: Congrats on getting the language correct!  As for some of your other guesses…  Felix's whereabouts are quite unknown during the creepy dream sequence.**

**And yes, I'm what you'd call a Valeshipper, I suppose.  But this story focuses on ****Sheba**** and Felix.**

**Here's the next update!**

**lins**(****x2): We meet again! I'm glad you're enjoying the story.  It's my favorite out of the ones I'm writing.****

**Here's the next update, especially for you.  And thanks for the compliments!**

**Dinny****: Thanks for the encouragement! Enjoy this chapter!**

**Whew… that alone gives me incentive to update more frequently!  Thanks again to everyone who reviewed!**

**A special thanks to my faithful beta-reader, Crab Apple Fairy, as well as the ****new guinea**** pig I have here at college!  With both of you, all grammar mistakes are officially not my fault =D.**

**Until next time!**

**-AE**


	5. Gather to Me

**Disclaimer:  I don't own Golden Sun, but I may have to invest in a bulletproof vest after you get done with this chapter (don't say I didn't warn you!)**

The sun was rising slowly in the east as the party resumed its trek.  With Jenna hobbling along on her injured ankle, progress was slower than usual.  They passed Naribwe nearly two hours after dawn and paused there for a quick breakfast.  They'd been going for another hour at least, with the sun slowly continuing its climb into the gray sky.  Dark clouds were gathering to the south, and Sheba couldn't shake a strange sense of foreboding as they drew closer to the storm.

The journey was very quiet.  Jenna was concentrating on her walking, grimacing with each step.  Piers walked silently at the rear, his usual stoic self.  Even Kraden remained absorbed in his thoughts.  Sheba would normally have appreciated the respite, but she was too preoccupied with her own thoughts to notice the oppressive silence.

Felix had barely spoken the entire morning, and the few words he had managed had been flat and emotionless.  Dark circles ringed his vacant eyes, and his steps dragged.  He looked like he hadn't slept at all the night before.  Sheba had been hoping for an improvement, but if anything he looked worse in the bright morning light.

The young girl sighed to herself as she rounded yet another bend in the road.  Felix was obviously putting too much pressure on himself.  Now that she thought about it, he had been that way ever since the lighthouse.  He was trying to shoulder the entire burden himself.  Sheba needed to convince him that the rest of them were here to help him.

That she would always be there to help him.

*               *               *               *               *               *

Jenna winced involuntarily as her sword banged against her ankle, shooting pain through her leg.  She'd been doing her best to keep up with the rest of the group.  Even though she hated to admit it, she knew she was slowing the group down.  The entire group seemed to be mired in a weariness that went far beyond just physical exhaustion.

Of course, her darling brother wasn't helping matters.  He was nearly stiffer than the ground she'd slept on last night.  He just stared ahead, mechanically trudging along.  He was like a huge black hole of emotion, sucking all the energy out of the party.  Jenna was angry with him.  But she wasn't quite willing to admit that she was worried about him as well.

The plan for the day had been to reach the Gondowan coast by evening and camp on the beach.  But the throbbing in her leg suggested that they'd be lucky to make it even halfway.  Felix would be frustrated at their lack of progress, Sheba would go into one of her worry spells, and the entire group would grind straight into the ground.

Not for the first time today, Jenna wondered if a case of hotfoot would get this group going again.

*               *               *               *               *               *

Felix reached the bend in the road and turned back resignedly, watching as Piers helped Jenna limp along on her foot.  She'd held up fairly well during the early hours, but an hour ago her leg had worsened.  As much as he didn't like it, she probably needed a rest.  The ever-threatening clouds loomed closer still, further darkening Felix's mood.  He adjusted the scabbard on his back impatiently.

Sheba walked up beside him, her staff clinking on the ground.  "I don't know how much further Jenna's going to make it," she commented carefully, avoiding his gaze.

He nodded curtly, glancing down in disgust.

Sheba sent him a side-glance.  Felix quelled an internal spike of angry guilt.  They'd all been glancing at him this morning, like he was some freak.  Some freakish failure, a walking death warrant.****

"Felix," Sheba began, "we should really stop for lunch now."

He turned slowly and stared at her blankly.  She shrank back for a moment, then her face set with determination.

"That storm ahead is going to catch us fairly soon, and we want to be able to cook the food before it hits.  Besides," she reasoned, "it will give Jenna a chance to rest."

"Very well," Felix cut in.  "You can stop for lunch here.  I want to keep going ahead."

Sheba gave him a bewildered look.  "What?"

Felix continued his stare.  "If I get to Madra ahead of you guys, I can make sure the ship is ready to go when you get there.  We'll save time that way."

Sheba blinked a couple of times.  Felix fought to keep the scowl off his face.  She was going to try to talk him out of it, he just knew it.

"Felix, that's crazy!" There it was.  "It's dangerous out in the wilderness! You can't possibly travel alone."

"I agree," Kraden interjected as the others joined the discussion.  "We really must stick together, even if it means a slight delay."

Felix gestured at his sister's ankle angrily.  "It's pretty obvious that Jenna isn't going to be able to make good time.  If I get to the ship ahead of time and get it ready, we'll save time at the coast."

"But it won't take you that long to get the ship ready, Felix," Jenna argued.  "Besides, my foot will be fine."

"Your foot is not fine-" Felix started.

"The point is moot," Piers interjected.  Felix stopped, surprised.  What was the Lemurian up to?

"You won't even be able to enter the ship without my crystal," he informed Felix.

"Well, you could give me the crystal," Felix countered.

Piers took a step back, eying the Venus adept cautiously.

"Come on," Felix's voice rose.  "Give me the crystal!"

Silence rang through the dead air.  Sheba took a small step away from him and joined the line of his friends.

"I am bound as a Lemurian to keep this crystal," Piers ventured uncertainly.

Felix glared at him.  Kraden stifled a cough.

"We may as well just stick together," Sheba managed, stealing a glance at Felix.

The others all nodded nervously.  Felix turned and started walking away.

"Where are you going?" he heard Jenna ask.

"Nowhere!" he yelled without slowing.

His thoughts raced as fast as his feet would carry him.  They were all conspiring against him.  He knew he would become the bad guy when he'd stolen the Elemental Stars, but he hadn't counted on the others.  But first Jenna, then Sheba, and now Piers had latched onto him… burdened him.  They followed him around, forcing him to make needless accommodations.  With each new person he felt his control over his destiny slipping.

He had assumed all the responsibility, all of the risk.  It wasn't fair of the others to impose themselves on what was rightfully his.  The quest was his.  All they did was give him extra worries, extra trouble.  He alone had started this quest, and he would finish it.  Alone.

It was time to take control again.

Except they would try to stop him.  They would argue that he needed help.  Felix scoffed in disgust.  He didn't need them.  He didn't need anybody.  If they refused to see that…

He'd just have to show them.

It was time to free himself from their grasp.

A shadow passed over Felix's face, and he looked up to see that the dark clouds had indeed caught up with him.  A cold breeze pierced his pale skin, penetrating through to his bones and his very core.

He took off his gauntlets and slipped his hand into his satchel, trembling fingers closing around the familiar warmth of the ancient tome.  The wind picked up, flying through the tattered pages.  Felix looked at the blood-red text and felt the darkness overwhelm him.

He bared his teeth into a smile.

"_Vehsoj ev olac," he intoned, "__wukxoh ke mo!"_

*               *               *               *               *               *

Sheba glanced around.  The bright day had suddenly become dark and dreary, with large clouds threatening overhead.  The fire they'd made to cook lunch flickered and danced with sinister purpose, and Sheba was suddenly cold.  The landscape seemed surreal, and Sheba had the strange, fleeting sensation that she'd seen this before.

"We're under attack!"

Sheba glanced next to her, where Jenna had stood suddenly.  The Mars adept hobbled forward, palm extended, and incinerated a pair of zombies that had attacked their camp.

Sheba sat frozen in fear.  This seemed very familiar…

To her other side, Piers stood slicing away at yet more of the undead warriors.  Another contingent made their way towards her, and Sheba snapped out of her trance, blasting the first group with a plasma attack.  The next group was flung to the side with a whirling tornado.  The battle seemed to be going well, but the young mage couldn't shake a nagging feeling of dread.

Suddenly, a dark shadow stood before her.  Sheba strained her eyes to recognize this newcomer, when suddenly a bright flash of lightning illuminated him.

It was Felix.

She stared, frozen, into the lifeless eyes that she knew so well.  He returned her stare, then grinned sadistically at her, stretching a pale, skeletal hand forward.

He spoke, and it was his voice, only horribly distorted and mangled, as if his throat was rotting.

"_Xopoj ev xocc, rhadw vehkx kxo taho advohde!"_

As Sheba watched, Felix flung something toward Piers, and glowing hexes seemed to surround the Lemurian, boxing him in.  All of a sudden, the hexes exploded, and the Lemurian disappeared, immolated in the sheets of flame that had engulfed him.

Sheba's thoughts finally caught up to her.  She screamed shrilly, and ran towards the crumpled form of the Lemurian.  Her breath left her as she saw him.

His hair had totally disintegrated.  What was left of his body clung in limp strands to his crisp, blackened skeleton.  It was just like her nightmare all over again… only this time, Piers was dead.  

Sheba took a horrified step backwards as Felix turned to Jenna.  She couldn't comprehend what was happening.  She dimly heard Felix's ghastly chant starting again.

Felix was going to kill them all.

"_Cok feajed vcen vhoo!"_

The blast of foul air extended from Felix's crooked palm.  Less than a foot from the fiercely battling Mars adept, it collided with the gusts from Sheba's palm.  Rain began to pour from the black sky as Felix gave an unearthly shriek and turned to focus his attack on Sheba.  

Sheba concentrated.  Felix had gained unbelievable power; she was having trouble keeping his assault at bay.  A miniature tornado formed between the two former friends.  Through the whipping winds, Sheba could see all the power and fury of Hell blazing forth from Felix's soulless eyes.

"Felix," she called out, horribly torn.  "Why are you doing this?"

His eyes blazed towards her as his ghastly voice rang out.

"You cannot win, Sheba!" he spat venomously.  "I have more power than you could possibly imagine.  I shall light the lighthouses… and take Alchemy for myself!"

Sheba's blood ran cold as the tears cascaded down her cheeks.

"Felix… don't make me do this!" she sobbed.

In response, Felix merely redoubled his assault.  The foul winds swirled in violent arcs, and Sheba felt herself losing control.

Suddenly, a beam of flame shot out from behind Sheba, missing Felix's head by less than a foot.  Sheba felt the pressure on the tornado drop off as his concentration was broken, and suddenly the deadly funnel shot towards Felix.  Sheba felt her heart leap into her throat.

Felix's reflexes were quick, though, and he dove just beyond the reach of the whirling winds.  Sheba felt her heart return to her chest as she waved her hands and dispelled the tornado.  Felix got to his feet and shrieked furiously at his sister.

"Sheba, get over here!" Jenna screamed, fending off more undead warriors.

Sheba backed her way towards the older girl, furiously wiping the tears from her face.

"You'll pay for that, insolent fools!" his harsh voice grated.  "_Tomedj ev xocc, ukkusb!_"

As Sheba watched, the ground around Felix erupted, and several hell-spawned demons dragged themselves from the earth's clutch.  Without waiting for them to charge, she threw a plasma assault at the nearest batch, and Jenna followed it up with a flare storm.

"Why is he doing this?" Sheba screamed over the crash of thunder.

"I have no idea!" Jenna returned, blasting one of the charging zombies with a beam of fire.  "But he's obviously not playing around!"

The four remaining demons closed fast.  Sheba sent a gust of wind and rain screaming at them to slow their charge.

"Jenna!" Sheba yelled as an idea hit her.  "Draw your sword!"  She ignored the incredulous look Jenna shot her and concentrated, whirling the air around the girl's feet.

_Attack them, _she thought at her, _and I shall aid you_.

Jenna nodded beside her and drew her rapier.  As the enemy closed, she dropped into a fighting position.  Sheba focused her energies and Jenna leapt forward a full fifteen feet, decapitating one of the demonic warriors.  She dodged two other blows as if they were in slow motion, then dispatched another of the enemy.  A quick flare storm took care of the third, and Sheba's lightning assault took care of the fourth.

Yet there was no time to rest.  Another one of Felix's shrill cries accompanied a second army of undead zombies.

"We can't keep this up forever!" Jenna called worriedly, favoring her ankle.

"We can't kill Felix!" Sheba yelled, swirling a tornado to carry away three of the attackers.

Jenna sidled up beside her, a look of grim determination on her face. 

"We may not have a choice."

Sheba stared at her in disbelief, then glanced at Felix's sadistic smirk and dark eyes, blazing with fury as his ring of zombies closed around the two girls.  There had to be another way.

"He's possessed!"

Sheba and Jenna turned to see Kraden behind them.

"Thanks so much for pointing that out!" Jenna screamed in frustration, blasting a pair of zombies who strayed too close.  The circle was closing quickly.

"I think I know how we can save him!" Kraden continued, ignoring her.

"What?" Sheba screamed.

"SILENCE!" Felix thundered, raising something in his left hand.  "_Fxudkem jfahakj, kouh xej jeic!_"

Suddenly, Sheba recognized the object in Felix's hand.  It was the book from her nightmare!  She watched in horror as ghastly phantoms emerged, screeching, from its pages.  They swirled in fury around Felix, and he merely grinned and pointed.  The spirits flew straight and true, tearing through Kraden's body as the scholar screamed in agony.

When the spirits had dissipated, Kraden's lifeless form lay on the cold earth.

Then the zombies attacked.

Sheba fended off the first assault with her staff, then countered by hurling several zombies through the air on gusts of wind.  Beside her, Jenna was hacking off limbs desperately.

"Jenna!" she screamed, sending plasma coursing through some of her assailants.  But there were too many.  Jenna disappeared beneath a crush of undead.

"_Kxei uhk sedtomdot!"_

Sheba ignored Felix's incantation, futilely blasting still more of the zombie assailants, who had strangely stepped away from the fallen Mars adept.  Jenna sat up, bloodied and bruised.

Sheba barely saw the hint of a shadow, the ghostly flash of a scythe.

Jenna gave a strangled scream, stiffened, and fell to ground.

Something inside of Sheba snapped.  A huge blast of plasma radiated from her, immolating the entire zombie army.  But it was too late.

She was alone.

Felix's sadistic laughter echoed through the tempest.  Sheba turned towards him and saw his evil smirk.  A dark red glow emanated from the tome in his left hand.

She knew he could be saved.

She would only have one shot.

"_Tixuccud, a jimmed kxoo…"_

*               *               *               *               *               *

A dim pain pulsed in the back of his mind.  Then his awareness came rushing back, as if he was surfacing from a vast dark ocean.

He screamed in agony.

Felix sank to his knees, clutching his left arm.  It was burnt badly, as if from a bolt of lightning.  Bewildered, he looked around through the driving rain and saw a blur of white.

Sheba.

"Sheba?" he called uncertainly, grimacing in pain.

"Felix?" came the response.  "Felix, is it really you?"

"What… what's happening?"

Felix looked into Sheba's eyes.  She studied him for a moment, then cried out, "It really is you!" and ran over and enveloped him in a tearful hug.

Felix gazed around at the landscape as he squeezed Sheba tightly.  All kinds of undead corpses littered the terrain, but it was the sight of dark-auburn hair that ran his blood cold.

"Sheba, what happened?" he asked, more urgently this time.

Sheba pulled back and was about to answer when her tearful eyes widened in horror.  "Felix, look out!"

Without thinking, Felix dove forward with Sheba, rolling to protect her from whatever threat.  Landing painfully on his arm, he came up on one knee and drew his sword, alert for any sort of threat.

The ancient tome he'd found in the Gabomba Statue was floating in mid-air, exuding a blood-red glow.  And suddenly, everything clicked into place in Felix's mind.  He must have been corrupted by the Tomegathericon.  

Which meant all this destruction was his doing.

And that he'd killed his friends.

Horrified, he looked at Sheba, kneeling behind him.  But she could only tearfully nod her head.

"Oh my god," he whispered.

The dark glow intensified in front of him, expanding and seeming to take shape.

"What's happening?" he croaked at Sheba.

"I… I don't know," she whimpered.  "You chanted one last thing before…"

Felix shook with anguish.  Suddenly, the glow flashed brightly.

A tall, headless figure stood in front of them, exuding darkness.  As the two terrified adepts watched, the figure resolved into an empty suit of black armor, with a tattered cape swaying in the breeze behind it.  The Tomegathericon floated to rest on the ground, a small tendril of blood-red connecting it to the behemoth as it pulsed with unholy light.

|_ I AM THE DULLAHAN, BRINGER OF DEATH. |_

Felix took a step backwards as the suit of armor flexed its gauntlets.

| _PREPARE FOR YOUR JOURNEY TO HELL._ |

The unholy light from the evil tome slowly filled the suit of armor.  Felix and Sheba stood, transfixed.

| _VEHMADU JUWO!_ |

Suddenly, the armor's left arm swung towards the adepts.  A brilliant beam of white light extended from the gauntlet and sliced cleanly through Sheba's torso.  The young mage crumpled to the ground wordlessly as Felix ran to her side.

A festering black line marked where the beam had taken Sheba's life.

The evil laughter of the Dullahan reverberated through the heavens as Felix stood, his tears mingling with the bloody rain.

With his friends dead at his feet, Felix turned to face his demons.

**Author's Note: Before you all kill me, please note that if I'm dead I won't be able to write the conclusion to this story.  And that would make all of us rather unhappy, now wouldn't it?**

**Review responses:**

**Vyctori: "Kill not the characters!" … eh, so much for that part.  I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter… I love writing Jenna's snide little comments.  As for Felix and ****Sheba****… well, it may not look good now, but keep some faith!  Thanks for the review!**

**Empress Dotdotdot: Lighthouseshipping… I understand the theory, but it's too unwieldy for my tastes.  I think I prefer Fateshipping (or something else).  I may or may not translate the language, as the actual words he speaks aren't really important.  But since you asked, _Xocf mo jeic is literally translated as "Help my soul"_**

**College life aside, here's the next update!**

**Kyarorain: I'm glad you enjoyed it!  And you were right… Felix speaking the language was (and is) very, very bad…  Thanks for the support!**

**Oh, and all three of the above wanted to burn the Tomegathericon? That's kinda scary…**

**Kadevi: Thanks for the compliments! My format has always been a little bit off… something for me to work on, I suppose.  Here's the next chapter!**

**Smurf Cat:  I'm glad you're enjoying the story so much!  You're right, I'm not much for lemons, but I hope you're enjoying this anyway!  Sorry the last one took so long, here's the next!**

**That's all for this week… no characters left to kill…**

**I promise to update as fast as I can!  Until next time,**

**-AE**


	6. Horizon

**Disclaimer: Own Golden Sun, I do not.**

**Author's Note: It's certainly been awhile, but the conclusion of Gather to Me is here.  I hope you all enjoy and that it was worth the wait!**

         The tempest swirled around Felix as he faced the Dullahan.  He'd created this monster, and now it was up to him to stop it.

         Even with his friends dead behind him.

         | _VEHMADU JUWO!_ |

         Felix dove to the side just as the brilliant arc sliced through the air where he'd stood.  Felix shook his head.  He didn't have time to mourn his friends now.

         Besides, he was likely to join them soon.

         | _YOU CANNOT WIN, MORTAL._ |

         "We'll see," Felix growled.

         The Venus adept began his assault with a Gaea attack.  The earth at the Dullahan's feet exploded, showering it with boulders and gravel.  Yet the demon barely moved, the reddish glow from the Tomegathericon pulsing as if it was laughing at him.  Another arc of light slashed through the air, forcing Felix to flatten himself on the ground.  Palm outstretched, he formed a spire of stone, sending it slicing towards the Dullahan.  But the spire shattered on contact, barely dentingthe unholy armor.

         The pulsing light intensified as dark laughter echoed through the storm.

         | _YOUR FEEBLE PSYNERGY IS NO MATCH FOR MY POWER, BOY! _|

         Felix slowly picked himself up.  He'd thrown his best Psynergy at the beast, with no effect.  Worse, he was one misstep from joining his friends.

He could not win this battle.

         He had only one choice.

         Unleashing all of his pain, grief, and anguish in one wordless yell, the Venus adept drew his sword and charged.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         The searing light had blinded Sheba, and she'd stumbled forward as she shielded her eyes.  Now as she looked around, everything seemed faded and distant.  She felt very peaceful, as though the swirling hurricane could cause her no harm.  Dimly, she registered a large burst of earth of to her right, and she turned to see Felix flatten himself on the ground, barely avoiding a strangely familiar arc of light.

         Above her, the storm clouds seemed to part, and a pale yellow light grew in the sky.  It bathed her in its gentle warmth, inviting her to ascend to the skies with the wind.  She could feel her heart swelling as she gazed skyward.

         Another light intruded on Sheba's consciousness, interrupting her tranquility.  This was an ominous light,** pulsing red from her side.  Sheba glanced back over to see Felix pick himself up off the ground and face the hellish beast.**

         What was going on here?

         Sheba looked up at the yellow light, then back at the armor, pulsing with its red aura.

         Then she looked down, at the crumpled form of a short, blond girl.

         All her memory came rushing back.  And suddenly, she understood.

         The pale light beckoned to her.

         She looked up at it, then glanced over to see Felix draw his sword and charge the Dullahan.  The blood red aura nearly obliterated the image of the Venus adept as he exchanged blows with the demon.

         With a great effort, Sheba turned away from the skies and faced the battle.

         She could not abandon him now.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         The fury of Felix's attack seemed to have caught the Dullahan off-guard.  The demon's parries were short and defensive, allowing Felix to continue to press his advantage, slowly driving the beast backwards.  The red aura was no longer pulsing; it had darkened to a deep, steady crimson.  The light gave off a brutal heat, one that threatened to overwhelm the adept.  But he pressed on, driving his sword left and right, furiously beating back his opponent's defense.  And then he saw his opening.

         Shifting his balance, Felix sliced across to the left, beating the Dullahan's blade away.  Then, focusing all of his Psynergy into his blade, Felix rammed his sword into the Dullahan's gut, piercing the armor.

         The crimson light flashed brightly as a searing heat traveled through the blade and into Felix's hand.  The adept's scream was drowned out by the keening cry of the demon as it wrenched itself backwards, tearing the sword from Felix's grasp.  He stumbled forward, off-balance…

         …and the flat of the Dullahan's blade caught him in the chest.

         Felix flew backwards, hitting the ground hard and tumbling end over end.  His left arm could no longer move, crushed by his own body weight.  His armor had caved inward, and with each shuddering breath a terrible pain shot through his lungs.  He glanced over at the Dullahan just in time to see the demon rip his sword from its stomach and hurl it towards his head.  Felix rolled away as the blade embedded itself in the earth, quivering from the force of the blow.

         As Felix struggled to his feet, the red light emanating from the Tomegathericon intensified, burning brightly from an inner rage.  The horrific cry of the Dullahan continued, the searing light shining through the crack in the Dullahan's armor.  

         | _ENOUGH! _| the demon screamed.  Felix took grim satisfaction in the anger evident in its words.  |_ I TIRE OF THIS GAME.  YOU SHALL DIE **NOW!**_ |

         Felix tensed, ready for whatever assault was coming.

         | _KHIO SECCATO!_ |

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         As the demon's words reverberated through the maelstrom, Felix screamed in agony.  The Venus adept sank to his knees and fell forward, barely managing to catch himself with his hands.  Sheba watched in helpless horror as the adept convulsed once, a dark violet orb tearing itself from his body.  The orb floated through the air and into the open pages of the hovering Tomegathericon.  The violet light melded with the red and flowed into the Dullahan, mending the crack that Felix had made in its armor.

         A bright flash of lightning punctuated the demon's evil laughter.

         | _FOOL! YOU CANNOT HOPE TO DEFEAT ME! _|

         Panting on his hands and knees, Felix seemed barely able to raise his head.  Sheba's hands clenched in frustration.  There was nothing she could do!

         | _ENJOY THE FIRES OF HELL!_ | The Dullahan turned his back on the adept and raised both arms.

         |_ BOOFOH EV KXO HALOH JKOP, WIUHTAUD EV KXO WUKONUO KE XOCC…_|

         A sudden, ominous calm settled over the battleground.  Yet the pages of the Tomegathericon fluttered rapidly as its reddish aura darkened to black.

         | _SXUHED!_ _A JIMMED KXOO KE HODT XAJ JEIC! |_

         The black aura gathered inside the Dullahan, then shot out from the open head and into the stormy sky, gathering in a slowly tightening sphere.  Sheba didn't know what was about to happen, but she had to stop it somehow.  Her eyes darted back and forth between Felix, the Dullahan, and the gathering sphere.

         And suddenly, she knew.

         Sheba flew to Felix's side and bent to whisper in his ear.

         "_The book!_"

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         The black sphere was slowly growing in size, and Felix knew that he had lost.  He'd unleashed this demon upon the world, killed his friends, and now he would pay the price.  The black aura flowing through the Dullahan was pulsing again, mocking him as he prepared for the end.

         A sudden wind drifted through the clearing, surrounding Felix and blowing through his hair.  He didn't know why, but he suddenly felt at peace.

         A bright flash drew his attention to the sky.  The black sphere had grown to enormous size, and flashing rings of light were beginning to surround it.  The wind's intensity picked up, and suddenly, Felix thought he heard a whisper.

         "_The book!_"

         Felix's attention snapped to the Tomegathericon.  Its pages continued to flutter as it exuded the black aura.  And suddenly, he knew what he had to do

         The Venus adept half-crawled, half-dragged himself over to his sword, wrenching it out of the ground.  The Tomegathericon hovered in his vision, drifting through its demonic dance.

         With the last of his strength, Felix hurled his sword at the tome.

         The blade lodged itself in its pages, and a spurt of black ooze sprayed from the book.  The Dullahan gave a horrid cry and dropped suddenly to its knees, convulsing as its life bled out of the Tomegathericon.  The stream of black aura from the Tomegathericon flickered and erupted into flame.  The fire greedily consumed the darkness as it spread upwards.  When it reached the Dullahan, the demon's screams intensified as the armor melted away to nothingness.  Felix watched as the fire rose to the sky, dissipating the black sphere.  

A flash of red drew his attention to the Tomegathericon.  The black spurts had increased, and flashes of red light began to melt through the pages.  As the wind howled around him, the Tomegathericon exploded, knocking him backwards.  His sword clattered to the ground.

The remaining scraps of the evil tome floated away on the wind.

Felix looked around as the air lightened and the clouds parted.  The Dullahan was gone, the Tomegathericon destroyed.

He was alone.

The Venus adept crawled over to Sheba's body, cradling her in his good arm.  The realization of what he'd done finally overtook him, and he rocked back and forth, weeping as he held Sheba tightly.

He remained like that, his tears dripping onto Sheba's pale face as the wind blew gently around them.

*               *               *               *               *               *

         A great relief washed over Sheba.  Felix had done it, he'd destroyed the Tomegathericon.  She watched as he crawled over to her body and began to cry.  Sheba felt a great sadness overtake her, knowing that Felix would never be able to forgive himself.  She began to cry as well, ethereal tears that blended with the mists and the wind.

         Above her, the pale yellow light grew in intensity.  Sheba raised her face to the heavens, feeling the call of the skies.  Her time here had ended.

         She took one last look at Felix, as he cradled her body, hair ruffling in the breeze.  A torn piece of paper fluttered along the ground and pressed itself against his arm.  Sorrowfully, she turned away from the Venus adept and glanced towards the sky.  She closed her eyes and felt herself lose contact with the earth.

         As she gave herself to the light, she thought she heard Felix's voice, one last time.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         As Felix wept, Sheba dead in his arms, a small piece of paper brushed against his arm.  He glanced at the tattered page, recognizing the script from the Tomegathericon.  A strange feeling came over him as he read the only distinguishable word on the sheet.

         "_Holalo…_" he muttered.

         Turning back to Sheba, he was surprised to see a pale light on her face.  He looked up to see a golden light shining down from the skies.  The light surrounded Sheba and enveloped her.  A golden aura shone brightly around the wind mage, then faded abruptly.  After a moment, Sheba's eyes fluttered open.

         Felix's heart skipped a beat.  She was alive!  "Sheba?" he asked, incredulous.

         The wind mage's eyes moved over until they met his.  "Felix?"

         "You're…you're alive!" he breathed.

         Sheba smiled at him, and Felix enfolded her in his embrace.  "I thought I'd lost you."

         Sheba pulled back and smiled through the tears in her eyes.  "It was so strange, Felix… I saw this golden light, and it was calling to me.  I'd given myself to it, but I thought I heard your voice.  The next thing I knew," she said, glancing down, "I was looking at you."

         Felix stood up, helping Sheba to her feet.  He looked at the scrap of paper clenched in his hand, then back at Sheba.

         "Felix!" she started, noticing his arm.  "You're hurt!"

         "No, Sheba," he shook his head, smiling.  "I've been healed.  Because you're alive."

         He looked into her deep, hazel eyes.

         "I love you, Sheba."

         Sheba's tears spilled onto her face as her smile widened.

         "I love you too."

         The wind swirled around them triumphantly as they kissed.

         *               *               *               *               *               *

         Felix breathed in deeply, enjoying the still night air.  The sounds of the dinner went on behind him.  Jenna was complaining about the food, how it wasn't spicy enough for her.  Kraden began to admonish her, but Jenna continued her tirade, taking out her ire on the old scholar.  Felix smiled to himself.  Jenna had been crankier than usual ever since they'd arrived safely in Madra.  The group was enjoying one last good dinner before setting out on their sea voyage.

         It had been fitting, Felix thought, that the book that had taken his friends from him had, in the end, restored them as well.  The first night they'd arrived in Madra, Felix had made a fire in his room.  He held the last scrap of the Tomegathericon in his hand, then gazed back at the flickering fire.  Without a last thought, he'd tossed the scrap in.  It did not burn, but rather sizzled and bubbled until it melted into the ashes. _ The curtains ruffled slightly in the breeze, then settled into stillness.  It was over.****_

         Now, as he looked out from the balcony to the horizon and the journey that awaited them, he felt a serene calmness.  He did not know if they would succeed in their quest.  In fact, he rather doubted it.  But the clanking of dishes and the sound of laughter behind him gave him peace.  All his friends were safe; and for that, he was truly happy.

         He heard a soft step on the doorway behind him.

         "Yes, Sheba?" he called.

         The wind mage came up beside him and leaned on the railing.  "I didn't want to disturb you."

         "I'm just enjoying the fresh air," Felix answered.  "You're more than welcome to join me."

         Sheba slid over and put her arm around him, leaning her head on his shoulder.  Felix draped his arm across her shoulders, taking comfort in her presence.  The horizon could wait; his friends were gathered here. 

**A/N: And that, as they say, is that.  Here's the final batch of review responses:**

**Empress Dotdotdot: Things are better now! You must be happy! …and you were very smart with your guess about Revive.**

**And to Picard… it was merely by chance that you died first.  I promise.**

**Kadevi: I really didn't have the heart to kill them all of permanently.  I hope the ending makes up for it!**

**Vyctori: I hope I didn't cause too many nightmares!  And I didn't kill the characters… permanently…**

**Hope you enjoyed the ending!**

**GoldenDaydreamer: Here's the last update… hope you enjoy it!  Thanks for the review!**

**Kyarorain: I wish everyone else had followed your example and attacked Dullahan, rather than threatening me… although I guess I deserved it.  Thanks for the review!**

**Smurf Cat: The Dullahan can be a frustrating opponent, can't it?  And you're correct, it was Formina Sage that killed ****Sheba****.  Thanks for the encouragement, and here's the ending!**

**Lins: Thanks for all your comments… I liked your reaction… it was exactly what I was trying to achieve.  Hopefully I'll see you soon!**

**NintendoGamer(x2): It was a little over 2 months, and I'm sorry it took so long for me to update!  Here's the end of the story, and thanks very much for your reviews!**

**I would like to apologize for the long delay.  My life, once again, intervened.  Second semester starts next week, so this will likely be the last update for a while, but I will try to get the occasional chapter out.**

**I really enjoyed writing this story, and I appreciated all the feedback I received from my reviewers.  Your reactions made this story work.**

**So here we are, at the end.  An extra special thanks to my two beta readers, without whom this would not have been possible.  You guys are great!**

**Until the next story,**

**-AE**


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